


This Night Is Not Forever

by theloverneverleaves



Series: Shadowhunters Love Fest [8]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - This World Inverted (Shadowhunters TV), At least in the World Inverted, Fluff, Legendary Lothario Alec Lightwood, M/M, Magnus is the cutest, The Adventures of Alec Lightwood, and I contradict everything from the episode but whatever
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-08
Updated: 2017-02-08
Packaged: 2018-09-22 23:51:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9630425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theloverneverleaves/pseuds/theloverneverleaves
Summary: Alec Lightwood is a happily settled down man in a loving, caring relationship. But things weren't always that way... and once upon a time, Alec used his Valentine's Day to celebrate the spirit of the night as much as possible.aka. world inverted legendary lothario alec lightwood





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written as part of the [Shadowhunters Love Fest](http://achilleanragnor.tumblr.com/post/154910608248/shadowhunters-valentines-day-fic-a-thon). Today's prompt is Past Valentine's Days, we're back in The World Inverted for the misadventures of Alec Lightwood.
> 
> Come yell at me at [isabellebiwoods](http://isabellebiwoods.tumblr.com/) xoxo

At thirteen years old, Alec Lightwood realised he was gay.

It wasn’t something that happened all at once, even if it did happen relatively early. There was no singular moment, and no cute stories from his mother about how he danced too much to be a straight boy (as if it worked like that anyway, what you like doing has very little to do with sex). What he did know, was that all the kids at school were talking about the girls they wanted to date, and when they asked Alec who he liked, his mind span into a blank. Everyone around him, all his friends, they all seemed to have childhood crushes on someone or the other. Raj had been shooting longing looks at Becky from History class for weeks.

Alec watched all that and listened to the talk, and he wanted so much to be able to answer. He sat in Math class and wondered which of the girls he liked the most. But he could never really answer in the way that anyone wanted him to.

In fact, the conclusion he came to was that Jace was the prettiest person he knew, which really was no conclusion at all. Jace was the star of the school, everyone loved him. And when Alec saw him in the locker rooms it was always a moment of ‘oh’, a moment that made him pause for breath.

Only that was weird, because Jace was his brother, but still. Alec couldn’t deny where his eye wandered to. Adopted or not, Alec absolutely was not going to do anything with Jace. But still, Alec would always tease Jace for being the source of his gay revelation, which Jace always seemed to take an undue amount of pride in.

The first person he told was Izzy, quickly followed by Jace himself. They were supportive, but really he had expected no less from them. He told his parents at sixteen, if only to stop them asking which girl he was planning to take to the winter formal at school. They were surprised, but not unkind about things. He wasn’t exactly likely to talk to them about the boys he liked, but at least they weren’t kicking him out on the street.

From the stories he saw online, he was lucky for that. And he was grateful.

By the time he turned seventeen, Alec had been kissing as many boys as were willing to kiss him back, even if he wasn’t technically out. There was a summer camp fling, a senior behind the bike sheds, even one incident in the store closet right next to the staff room.

So really, the fact that he spent every Valentine’s Day after going to college hitting up a party or bar and making sure he got laid should have come as a surprise to absolutely no one.

The most notable of these days came when Alec was twenty one.

Fresh out of college with a Business degree (something Maryse Lightwood had insisted on before she let her son do any sort of ‘galavanting’, even if he had been building up his own business in parallel with his studies, so really, leaving college wasn’t that scary), Alec had his own apartment in Brooklyn, and two siblings to were determined to make it feel like home. Which according to them, meant invading it at every possible opportunity.

It was Valentine’s Day, and the city refused to let any of them forget it, with flowers splashed across every street corner, roses going for a fortune, and chocolate in the shape of hearts decorating windows. It was all extremely disgusting, and the fact was that he, Jace and Izzy were all completely and utterly single.

Rather than wallow, though, it had been Alec’s idea to go out, despite Izzy’s protests about how she’d rather stay in and eat as much chocolate as possible and watch Blade Runner. Jace had protested that it wasn’t even a romantic movie, which had only caused more arguing until Alec had pushed their coats into their hands and insisted they were going out.

An hour later, they had a table at a bar, a collection of violently pink cocktails in front of them, which were so sweet it made them all gag and laugh about it. He’d smuggled Jace and Izzy in because he knew the owner - which really only proved it was who you knew, not what you knew. The bar was nice - laid back, classy, and there was also a distinct lack of heterosexuals around. His siblings included.

He did love being a trailblazer. It seemed that being straight was absolutely not a Lightwood trait. By the time Jace came out last, his father had thrown his hands up in exasperation and told Max that there was no need to come out later, because he was just going to assume that Max was somewhere on the spectrum too. Max, being only eight at the time, had just looked a bit bewildered, but had nodded solemnly. Alec had promised to explain it when he was older.

“Even I’m not gay enough for these,” Alec had eventually conceded, squinting at their drinks as if it was going to poison him. Really, Alec was going into event planning. He was good at it. And he certainly would never have hosted a party where drinks were served in heart shaped wine glasses, violently neon pink, and decorated with glitter.

“That does not sound like the Alec I know and love. Who are you and what have you done with my brother?” Jace challenged, and Alec simply snorted.

“What, because I’m not gay enough for the ‘Rainbow of Love’?” he asked, quoting another one of the ridiculous drink names for the menu.

“You absolutely should be gay enough for the Rainbow of Love,” Izzy told him, pushing her glasses up her nose a little. “You always tell me to think more gay.”

“As if that’s a bad thing,” Alec retorted. Izzy giggled.

“I’m surprised you agreed to spend tonight with us at all, big brother. Don’t you usually use Valentine’s Day to hook up?” Izzy asked curiously. Alec scoffed a little.

“I can do it later. Valentine’s Day is just a holiday full of expensive, useless gifts to make couples feel under pressure, and single people feel sad and miserable. It’s easy pickings.”

“So prove it,” Jace challenged him. “If you’re such a Casanova, go ahead and do it. How many guys do you think you can pick up in one night?”

“As many as I want.”

“So do it.”

It took them fifteen minutes to establish the rules. It counted as one score if Alec either got someone to kiss him, or got their number. Alec was not allowed to walk up to someone and ask for either of those things, as that would definitely be cheating. Leaving the bar invalidated the contest, so he couldn’t get too aggressive or someone would wonder about the tall dark haired guy trying to make out with half the room. He had until midnight, which was two hours away. Plenty of time, or so Alec said. After that, he swallowed what was left of his cocktail and headed off.

The weirdest thing about it all was knowing that Izzy and Jace were sitting there watching him, and probably taking pictures for Instagram. Part of him felt bad - he didn’t really want to turn these people into marks on a bedpost, so to speak. But it was Valentine’s Day. No single person in this bar was really looking for an attachment, they were looking to fill a hole and pretend they weren’t single. So… it wasn’t so bad, right?

Either way, bets had been placed and Alec wasn’t about to lose.

Number one came within ten minutes. He sat down at the bar itself and started chatting with a hot looking guy that definitely worked out. Alec had his number in the space of those ten minutes without even really trying. Alec smiled and made his excuses not long after, a drink in his hand as he subtly waved the napkin with the red ink digits on it at his siblings. Izzy’s jaw nearly hit the floor. He was almost offended she was surprised.

Number two was a little harder. There was a shy looking guy sitting alone, sipping on one of the ridiculous cocktails. It took a lot more effort to get him to come out of his shell, so to speak. Apparently he’d been waiting for a date but he’d been ditched, and Alec couldn’t tell if that was a truth or a lie. Not that it really mattered. Said guy also managed to spill cocktail down his shirt, which Alec so graciously helped mop up. A phone number came not so long after that, along with a lot of liberal blushing.

Number three was more controversial. Alec went back to the bar for another drink, and was waiting alone quite happily, not even trying to gather attention when someone came over to him and tapped him on the shoulder. Alec turned, and before he could even get a decent look, he had a whole lot of person in his face, and lips on his. The kiss was brief and sloppy, and Alec had definitely had better. But for the sake of his audience, he gave it everything he had.

The fact that he _had_ an audience at all was a bit weird, but whatever.

The guy pulled away after a moment, grinning broadly. “Thanks,” he said. “My friend bet me $20 that I wouldn’t be brave enough to make out with anyone, so I’m proving a point.” Alec chuckled. It wasn’t as if he didn’t understand the sentiment.

On returning to Izzy and Jace after that, Jace wanted to invalidate it since Alec hadn’t had to _do_ anything for it. But Izzy had protested, saying that Alec couldn’t help it if he was apparently pretty enough for random strangers to want to kiss him as a hello. So it stood, along with the two napkins, that he left in Izzy and Jace’s possession.

Number four and five came on the space that had been cleared to make a temporary dance floor. Alec got the impression those two were together, but before he knew it he was dancing with both of them, and exchanging kisses like sweet words.

The more Izzy and Jace watched, the more Jace realised he was definitely losing that bet he’d placed.

 

* * *

 

“So by the end of the night, Alec’s kissed like… what seven different people? And I mean, lucky for you cooties isn’t a real thing because Jesus…”

“Jace!” Alec complained again, but Magnus simply chuckled and squeezed his hand.

“No, I want to hear the end of this now,” Magnus requested gently. Alec sighed heavily. He invited his siblings to all of his parties. It was something they’d agreed on years ago, supporting each other. He and Iz bought all their coffee from Java Jace, and they all went to whatever event Alec was throwing, as long as he could get them on the guest list. But when he’d invited Jace along to his charity event, he hadn’t exactly expected Jace to snag his boyfriend and start regaling stories of Alec’s previous Valentine’s Day misdemeanours.

So he’d enjoyed hooking up on Valentine’s Day. So what? It was different now. He wasn’t single, for a start. He’d invited Magnus without a second thought, and for the first Valentine's Day in living memory, he was with someone he actually wanted to be with, and he hadn’t looked at another man all night.

In fact, despite this event being important to him, he was just looking forward to getting Magnus home and having a real celebration. That was, if Magnus still wanted anything to do with him after this story.

“So Izzy and sat there until midnight, watching this horror show take place in front of us, completely sober I may add because our drink buyer was off trying to hit up the entire bar-”

“On your orders!”

“And by the end of the night, Izzy and I have five napkins with numbers written on them, Alec’s phone had another three in there, and he’s kissed seven guys. And you know, Iz and I are like, fine, you win, you scored over ten which is way more than expected. So we, being totally stone cold sober, decided to go home.” Jace continued on as if Alec hadn’t interrupted at all, but Alec cringed as he remembered the part of the story that came next.

“Jace, c’mon.”

“No way, the ending’s the best part.” Alec sighed. “So we go back to Izzy’s apartment, right? But Casanova here says that he’ll catch us up, he just wants to talk to his friend before he leaves - the one that owns the place, right? So Iz and I are like, sure, that’s reasonable, and head out. I think we ended up watching Blade Runner like she wanted, but eventually I pass out.

“So when I wake up in the morning, I decide to be a good brother, and go and make sure Alec’s actually, you know, home. Alive. Only his apartment’s empty. So I text him. Three times. Eventually, I call him twice, of which both times my brotherly concern is ignored-”

“I was asleep!”

“Totally ignored, because you know, why would I be worried? Then I get a text at 11am - ‘Sos, need extraction’. And this idiot is still at the bar. Because he not only ended up staying there all night, but also ended up sleeping with the owner’s younger brother, because you know what, why not go for broke?”

Alec blushed violently at the memory. It hadn’t been deliberate. He had genuinely gone into the back to check in with his friend. But then this guy had been there and they’d hit it off right away and well… in his defence, he hadn’t realised it was her brother until _after_ they’d had sex.

Actually, that probably wasn’t a defence at all.

“So I come by to pick him up, and there he is. Every single damn one of his shirt buttons are gone, which he’s trying to hide under a jacket. He’s literally covered in glitter from whatever they’d been using on the glasses, and there’s little bits of pink confetti in his hair, because what, you guys had sex in the storeroom floor?”

That glitter had taken a week to come off, too. Still, it was worth it.

“And that is the story of Alec Lightwood’s most sexed up, crazy Valentine’s day ever. This is the guy you’re dating, Magnus, honestly. I don’t know how you managed to get him to settle down,” Jace said, but there was a softness and affection to his tone that betrayed his real feelings. Alec never had settled down before. His relationships were brief and sporadic, because his work was always more important. But Magnus was different. He was brilliant and perfect and sweet and everything Alec could have ever wished for in a partner. He was always there. Never complained, never pushed back unless Alec really deserved it.

And as Alec glanced sideways nervously, wondering what the soft, sober, cardigan wearing Magnus Bane thought of all this, he couldn’t help but think how lucky he was. Because Magnus was simply smiling, like he was restraining laughter. He probably was.

“Okay, that’s enough of your input for tonight, _Jonathan_ ,” Alec cut in, and Jace snorted.

“Yeah, whatever, okay. I’m going. You can make out with your boyfriend now and make him forget your dark, dark past. Just don’t pick up any more numbers.”

Jace departed to… who knew where, as long as it wasn’t here it was probably better, and Alec sighed. He slipped an arm around Magnus’ waist, pulling him off to the side slightly.

“I’m sorry about all that,” Alec apologised briefly, but Magnus shook his head.

“No, it’s sweet. I like hearing about you.” Alec snorted.

“Even that kind of crazy story?”

“Any story with you in it is worth hearing.” Magnus said sincerely, before chuckling a little. “I can’t believe you took that bet.”

“I think I was a bit drunk to begin with, so it seemed like a good idea. Jace missed the part where we had beer at my place before we went out.” Alec paused. “It was a little bit of a dick move, right?” Maybe a little predatory, going around a bar with the aim of bouncing through as many people as possible as fast as you could. But Magnus shook his head.

“Maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing, but you didn’t hurt anyone. And I doubt you led anyone on. You were just… being you. Irresistible as you are.”

Alec raised an eyebrow. “I’m irresistible now, am I?” he asked, a wry smile curving his lips. Magnus flushed a little, rolling his eyes.

“Don’t act like you don’t know it, Lightwood,” Magnus complained. Alec smiled, leaning in to press a slow, brief kiss to Magnus’ lips. He lingered near his boyfriend a little, hand skating along his side.

“As long as I’m irresistible to you, that’s all I care about.”

Magnus smiled, leaning in a little. “So I conquered the great Alec Lightwood, did I?”

Alec chuckled openly, slipping his arms around Magnus more fully, taking comfort in the embrace.

“Absolutely.”

Maybe he wouldn’t be having any random hook-ups this Valentine’s Day. But that sounded a whole lot better to his ear, as long as he got to have Magnus. He’d always said Valentine’s Day was a holiday to make single people feel sad and lonely, and couples buy useless, expensive gifts.

But maybe it could be something else. Maybe it could be a day to show his wonderful, magical boyfriend just how much he’d changed. How much he cared.

That sounded like a pretty perfect day to Alec. And if you asked Magnus, he’d say it sounded pretty perfect too. And really, what else did you need?

Although the less glitter and cheesy cocktails, the better.


End file.
